Mid September 2000- January 2001 and October - February 2002

Park gate We are back as volunteers at Toro Regional Park in Monterey County in California a second time. We will be working here until the begining of March 2002.

In return for working 20 hours a week we receive the use of a full hook-up site. The scenery is beautiful. These pictures were taken last year. We are in a different site within the park this year.

Wild turkeys feed near the motorhome.
Wild turkeys are common here.
Deer feed right in the our yard.
Deer forage right in the yard regularly.
One of many trails in the area. A senic view along a ridge.

One of our favorite activities here was hiking. The park has 4,758 acres, of which only a small part is accessible by car. The rest is accessible by trails for bicycles, horses, and on foot. It is very hilly with many challenging trails. It is very common to see deer, coyotes, bobcats, and wild turkeys. There are also wild pigs and cougars in the park as well as skunks, raccoons, many varieties of birds.

Work-camping experience:

We spent an extended time at this park, two winters in a row. We chose to do this for a number of reasons, the main one being our easy access to the location of our youngest son and his family. This is a county park and is a day use facility so there are no night duties. The park has four volunteer positions and you are asked to work each Monday and a total of 24 hours for a single and 32 hours for a couple. The Monday duties, four hours each, consist of cleaning all restrooms and picking up trash as well as removing garbage. The other work hours are spent manning the entry gate to collect fees, doing maintenance around the park and cleaning the employee lounge and shop. Telephones in the RVs are available if you pay the phone bill but cell service is poor. Internet is not available except by phone or at the office about 1 mile away. There is laundry equipment available near the RV sites and the view from some spots is terrific The park provides uniforms..

You can get information on volunteering at this or another county park in this area at:

Monterey County Parks
PO Box 5249
Salinas, Ca. 93915

Or call 1-800-593-8368.